Anglesey Abbey, Gardens & Lode Mill

Anglesey Abbey is the place to go for big, confident garden design on flat Cambridgeshire land. Lord Fairhaven turned meadow and grazing into an eighteenth-century style park in the twentieth century, so the 98 acres of grounds are built from long avenues, grass vistas, clipped lines and classical statues rather than hills or views. The result is a garden that is easy to walk, with plenty of space and a strong sense of order.

As you go round you move between enclosed seasonal gardens and wide open avenues. Look for the rose garden, the herbaceous garden, the dahlia garden, the hyacinth garden and the Narcissus garden, which takes its name from a statue of Narcissus rather than from daffodils. The Coronation Avenue of horse chestnuts runs out towards a crossing avenue, and the Temple Lawn was made to mark the coronation of Elizabeth II. At the edge of the grounds, Bottisham Lode leads to Lode Mill, an eighteenth-century watermill restored to working order, where flour is sold. The Winter Garden, opened in 1998 in Lord Fairhaven's memory, is one of the main reasons people come in the colder months.

Gardeners will find two very practical lessons here. One is how much drama comes from simple structure: a line of trees, a mown path and a statue at the end. The other is seasonal bedding done in separate rooms, so that each area peaks at its own time. The garden team has also run a large composting system since 1999 to improve soil and hold water through dry spells, a useful idea for anyone gardening on light East Anglian ground. There is a visitor centre with a restaurant and shop, so a long visit is easy to plan.